One of the lead contenders for the national chairmanship of the New Patrioic Party (NPP) is Stephen Ayesu Ntim.

As the July 15 to 17, 2022 conference draws nearer, he has been criss-crossing the country to woo delegates to elect him.

He has contested for the position on four previous occasions.

On each of those occasions, he lost narrowly to his contenders.

Mr Ntim, who is contesting the position for the fifth time, is highly tipped to win the chairmanship.

Interestingly, being his fifth time, Mr Ntim is also fifth on the ballot sheet as he contends with seven others for the position of national chairman.

Context

Mr Ntim's first attempt at the chairmanship was in December 2005. His second attempt was in 2010 while his third one was in 2014. His fourth attempt was a loss to Freddie Blay in 2018.

In 2005 when Mr Ntim first contested, he lost to Mr Peter Mac Manu, who was President Akufo-Addo's campaign manager in the 2016 polls.

During the 2010 NPP delegates conference, he lost to the late Jake Okanta Obetsebi-Lamptey and lost again to Paul Afoko in 2014.

His fourth attempt was in 2018 but he lost to his main challenger, Freddie Blay, a former Convention People’s Party (CPP) Member of Parliament for Ellembelle in the Western Region.
Prior to that, he had served as the party's first Vice Chairman between 2001 and 2005.

Strengthen party

 

In an interview with the Daily Graphic, Mr Ntim, pledged to position and strengthen the party to become the party of the nation.

He said he would work extra hard to resolve any differences within the party and among members of and ensure equitable distribution of opportunities and reward hard work.

“I have demonstrated consistency and tenacity, ingredients required to lead and achieve results,” he told the Daily Graphic last Friday.

Challenges

Mr Ntim acknowledged the challenges the country was faced with, largely due to the global pandemic, and stated that the NPP government under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had performed creditably well.

“Infrastructural activities are still ongoing, the government flagship programmes are still being implemented,” he said.

He said under his leadership, the party would continue with its development agenda for the country from 2025 and “will continue the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda.”

Touching on the government’s decision to go to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for support, Mr Ntim said the expectation of every Ghanaian was to see a turn-around of the economy within the shortest possible time due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian-Ukraine War.

“The decision to engage the IMF is a painful one but is needed to ensure we move back to the trajectory of economic progress and infrastructural development. This, I believe, among others, will motivate the rank and file of the party to work hard to ‘break the 8’.

Breaking the 8

Campaigning under the slogan “Time Aso to Break The 8", Mr Ntim said he would be articulating his message of hope and unity and also share his vision for the party with delegates.

He said the party under his chairmanship would extend its rule beyond the eight years maximum that had become the tradition for any political party in Ghana and he hoped the delegates would offer him the opportunity.

He is currently the board chairman of the Lands Commission where he is re-engineering land service delivery with technology.

Background

Mr Ntim was a member of the Danquah-Busia Club that transformed into the New Patriotic Party in 1992.

As an NPP veteran, he has served the party in various capacities.

Between 2001 and 2005, he served as the National First Vice- Chairman of the NPP and has since then contested four times for the chairmanship position without success. In the 2018 contest, he placed second after polling 2,515 votes against Freddie Blay’s 3,021 votes.

He will be coming on board with a very rich experience and expertise in Management Information Systems to drive the agenda of creating a digital platform for the party and the country as a whole.

Academic

He is a product of the University of Ghana and the University of Minnesota, USA, from where he holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in French and Linguistics and MBA in Management Information Systems respectively.

The multi-lingual Mr Ntim also holds a Diplome Superieur d’Etudes Francaises from the Universite Nationale de la Cote d’Ivoire, Abidjan.

He has over 20 years of experience as a Systems Engineer in both the USA and Ghana.

He started his profession as a Systems Engineer at Electronic Data Systems (EDS Inc) in Michigan, USA, where he worked from 1993 to 1995. Prior to that, he trained as a Programmer/Analyst at St Paul Fire and Marine in St Paul, Minnesota, USA.

He has served and has vast experience from several executive and corporate positions. He is a Director of BINSCO Associates, Accra; Managing Director of Espan Company Limited, a construction and engineering services company; and Managing Director of Detroit Computer Images, a commercial printing firm at New Achimota, Accra.

Social service

He is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of an Accra based NGO for the preservation of Ghanaian Culture, Heritage Protection Foundation; Board Chairman of Aqua Drill Company Limited.

He was a Board Member of the Electricity Company of Ghana from 2007 to 2009.

In terms of social services, he is a member of the National Black MBA Association, Minnesota Chapter, USA. He is also a member of the National Council of Patrons of the Association of Methodist Church Choirs and a Counselor and member of the Methodist Men’s Fellowship of the St Peter’s Methodist Church at Mile 7, New Achimota, in Accra. Stephen Ntim is also a Life Patron of the Wamfie Youth Association at Wamfie in the Brong Ahafo Region and a member of the Brong Ahafo Patriotic Caucus (BAPAC).